A Call to Order
by JaymondQ
Summary: Sentinel Prime calls all the representatives to order while Jhiaxus voices his concerns.


A Call to Order

Orion Pax quickly climbed the steps to the Forum of Enlightenment, pausing at the top and looking back at his friend. He smiled weakly at Bulkhead as the lumbering bot climbed the steps. The Golden Age of Cybertron was in full bloom. Buildings glittered, the streets were populated, and the people were out. The people had moved out of the Quintesson Age and had begun designing their own alt-modes instead of basing theirs off Quintesson design. All in all everything on Cybertron seemed perfect, but beauty was only skindeep.

Pax was shaken out of his stupor by Bulkhead. The large green bot shook him by the shoulder.

"Orion? Orion! C'mon buddy, we gotta go, we're already late."

"Isn't it beautiful Bulk?"

"Primus, not now Orion, you know they're gonna bust a lugnut if we aren't there for roll."

The two of them rushed into the public meeting. This was the Ano-Cycle meeting where the heads of each department met to discuss how things were going along in their work. Bulkhead and Orion Pax entered the room which shone a dazzling pink. The room itself looked like a dome flipped upside down, with balconies embedded in the dome for the heads of the different departments and a stalk in the middle for the acting Prime and Elite Guardsmen.

Standing in the middle was the acting Prime, Sentinel Prime, his red and orange colors seemingly a testament to the glow of the Golden Age. Flanking him were Ultra Magnus and Zeta Minor. Ultra Magnus was a large, all-white figure clutching an equally large blue hammer with white faces. His silver faceplate reflected the light around him, and he waved his long, boxy white arms to the gathering spectators who had come to watch. Magnus looked heroic opposite the sullen Zeta. As opposed to Magnus's bright white, Zeta was an unshiny gunmetal gray. He wore a horned helmet that covered all of his face except his eyes. He stood scanning the crowd, arms behind his back.

Orion Pax nudged Bulkhead. "Look Bulk, it's Ultra Magnus!"

"I know you're new at this kid, but you can't get too starstruck. Got that speech memorized yet?"

"Of course!" Orion was lying but he knew that should the need arise he could just wing it.

Sentinel Prime stood up and, in a loud and booming voice, declared the Forum open. He begen the roll call to make sure everyone was in their place.

"We will start with the police division. Barricade and Prowl?"

"Both here sir."

"Very well. Economics, Ratbat and Swindle?"

"Wouldn't miss this for the world, Sentinel."

"Your sarcasm is unneeded, Swindle. Construction, Scrapper and Hook."

"Both here, Sentinel sir."

"Thank you Scrapper. Now the military, Onslaught, Kup?"

"Both present and accounted for sir!"

"At ease. Science team, Jhiaxus and Thunderwing."

"Both here."

"And rounding this out is shipping, Bulkhead and...Orion Pax?"

Bulkhead answered for them. "Here sir." He looked down to the confused Orion. "You were a last-mnute addition to the roster."

Sentinel Prime stood up, grabbed his projector, and began the meeting. "The first order of business is to see how everyone is doing. According the Ano-Cycle reports everyone seems to be doing fine, but in the case of a larger issue that must be confronted in person?"

"I have one!" The one who demanded Sentinel's attention was Jhiaxus, who was wringing his hands. "The scientific advances that me and Thunderwing have both proposed to the government have been ignored."

"That is because your experiments are completely unethical. Shockwave's proposed 'power core combination' tech is dangerous and your friend Thunderwing's grafting process is highly volatile!"

"It isn't volatile!" This time it was Thunderwing's turn to get a say. "Given enough experimentation the grafting process could work, and the shells could prove better for dangerous situations. We could send someone to look for Nova-"

"NO ONE IS LOOKING FOR NOVA!" Sentinel's outburst made everyone flinch. "That traitor took the Matrix with him and never came back. He is not some lost adventuring hero. Nova Prime was a coward who was too afraid to face the Quintessons. Your grafting process is illegal, and should I find that you have continued I will have you arrested."

"But what about the combination technology?"

"I second that idea. I read the documents, the combination technology could prove extremely useful in many situations, Sentinel Prime sir." This time Onslaught had spoken, after watching the previous outburst carefully.

"I don't," replied Kup angrily, "why do you science types always have to tamper with how we are? First you say let us pick our own forms and now this?" Kup had kept his Quintesson form, as remembrance of the war he fought in.

"After reading the documents me and Hook agree!" Scrapper had just torn his head out of the proposed plans for combination technology. "Combination tech could vastly improve our ability to-"

"NO!" Sentinel's roar this time made everyone flinch with fear. "We will not tamper with our form. Anyone who does is to be arrested immediately. Prowl, Barricade, is this understood?"

Prowl nodded his approval at Sentinel, but Barricade faltered. "But Sentinel sir, Scrapper and Onslaught have a point. Even Thunderwing has a point-"

Sentinel turned sharply towards Barricade. "If you wish to join these, these _animals_ in prison, I am more than happy to let Prowl take you in as well. ALL of you that agreed. These experiments aren't science! They are an _abomination._ I will not sit idly by and let you make a mockery of our great race, neither here, nor anywhere else! This meeting is dismissed."

Orion turned his head towards Bulkhead, who looked pained at the preceding events.

"Does it always end like this?"

"There's always a shouting match between Ratbat and Sentinel, mostly over the state of the economy, but never was intense. Swindle always kept us laughing and Jhiaxus and Thunderwing always usually stayed quiet, but this. This was something different. Swindle didn't even attempt to crack a joke, and if what they're saying about this new tech is true, well it seems there's gonna be a lot on our hands soon."


End file.
